Live To Ride: YEIDA grants permission to hold international bike racing event at Buddh Circuit

For representational purpose

The Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) has granted a no-objection certificate (NOC) to FairStreet Sports, co-organiser of MotoGP Bharat, to hold the international bike racing event at Buddh International Circuit in September this year, officials aware of the development said.

The bike racing event is scheduled to be held between September 22 and 24. FairStreet Sports will organise the event jointly with the Spanish firm Dorna Sports, which owns the commercial rights for MotoGP.

It will be after a decade that any international racing event will be held at the Buddh International Circuit. The last international racing event held here was Formula 1, in 2013.

According to YEIDA officials, the debt-ridden Jaypee group will not be organising the event as it is currently going through a corporate insolvency process.

Officials said that the MotoGP organisers had pledged to invest Rs 472 crore through the event during the UP Global Investors Summit in February this year, and  earlier this month they had applied for a no objection certificate (NOC) to hold the event in September 2023.

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“We have given an NOC to the organisers to hold the event and sell tickets for it. They required permission to use the track 21 days prior to the main event and six days after it. It is a conditional NOC as they will have to seek the required approvals from other concerned departments as well,” YEIDA CEO Arun Vir Singh said.

He also said that the organisers have been informed about the ongoing litigation and its impact on the event. YEIDA officials added that the organisers have been told about the ongoing case at Allahabad High Court over YEIDA’s decision to cancel the allotment of 1,085 hectares of land — which includes the circuit — to Jai Prakash Associates Ltd (JAL) due to non-payment of dues.

The organisers have been informed that if any order is passed by the High Court then it would be applicable to the event organisers as well.

In their application for the NOC, the organisers have also sought permission to start track repairs and other work to make the circuit compliant with the requirements for holding a world-class motorcycle racing championship like the MotoGP.

They had said work needs to start at the circuit from the second week of May and will continue till the end of August 2023. The organisers have also sought permission to host ancillary events like music and cultural festivals, food festivals, etc., during the main race days.

Pushkar Nath Srivastava, Chief Operating Officer of FairStreet Sports, said, "NOC has been given by the YEIDA and it will be valid for seven years to hold this event. We will soon start ticketing of the event after identifying the ticketing partner."

He said that there will be nearly 116 riders, including backup riders, from around 20 countries who will participate in the MotoGP event.